Sahar Hashemi - Skinny Candy and Coffee Republic

Sahar Hashemi is a woman who knows how to spot a gap in the market. Barely into her forties, Hashemi has two successful start-ups under her belt already, is a successful author and, more recently, became a widely acclaimed motivational speaker. So how did she get her first big idea?

“On a trip to New York to see my brother in the early nineties, I noticed that London had no equivalent to match the hugely popular coffee bars that littered the streets and were always busy,” says Hashemi. 

She and her brother Bobby gave up successful careers - she as a lawyer and he an investment banker - to open their first Coffee Republic in 1995.

Without any experience in retail or the art of perfecting the cappuccino, they turned Coffee Republic into the UK’s first love affair with coffee and the public welcomed them with open arms. But it was not all plain sailing...

“Starting Coffee Republic with Bobby was the stuff of legend. We had 19 rejections from the banks for funding, but we kept going. The twentieth bank manager approved the loan, and Coffee Republic was born.”

Fast forward six years to 2001 - with Coffee Republic turning over £30m, Hashemi sold and moved on to her next big venture. After popularising skinny lattes and fat free muffins, what next for the UK's queen of coffee?

Hashemi moved on to her next joint project with her brother, and two years later their book Anyone Can Do It was released. It is the story of how they turned Coffee Republic from an idea into a hugely successful high street brand. Anyone Can Do It has since been translated into six languages, reached number one on the Amazon business chart and has been endorsed by the DTI, The Princes Trust and the Institute of Directors.

Not satisfied with early retirement and sitting back on the profits however, Hashemi again demonstrated her eye for spotting opportunity in the retail market by launching the UK's first low calorie sweets company in 2005. Hashemi realised she wanted a sweet treat that would not make her gain weight but nothing was available in the shops, so obviously the answer was to create her own. That idea became the enormously successful Skinny Candy.

“I got the idea because I needed them myself,” she says. “I love sweets so it was clear to me.”

After some initial tweaking of the sugar substitute in Skinny Candy, the product is now marketed as a low calorie alternative to sweets, with one packet providing just 99 calories. Now, with Skinny Candy available in such mainstream stores as Boots and Waitrose, Hashemi has divested herself of the day to day running of the company and, after selling 50 per cent to snack foods giant Glisten back in 2007, she has freed herself up to focus on her other passion, writing.

Her next book is due out in March 2010 and takes an entirely different approach to entrepreneurship.

“I believe the next big thing is to look at how to be an entrepreneur within an organisation, so you can enjoy the benefit of a salary while activating the entrepreneur inside yourself,” she says. “This is a different approach looking at individuals within companies and not just at the organisational level.”

And so what of her belief that anyone can do it, does she really think that is true?

“I genuinely believe anyone can do it, we all have a dormant entrepreneur inside us. It’s simply being able to turn an idea into reality. With the current economic climate, although it is scary, there is always an opportunity. One of my favourite quotes is ‘I hate to waste a good recession’. You have to see where the opportunity is and be creative.”

Video interview with Sahar Hashemi at Entrepreneur Country - Politics Not As Usual event

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